Instagram Growth for Small Business: 6 Marketing Tactics

If you’re a small business owner, you’ve probably already heard all about the importance of having an Instagram presence. With a whopping estimated 67% of marketers already on Instagram working on their brands, the social media competitive space is going to get a lot more intense than it already is.

With an expected reach of about 1.2 billion users by 2023, small business owners are increasingly understanding that making their brand presence engaging is vital to attracting their ideal clients.

With inexpensive advertising campaigns and close to no social media upkeep, Instagram offers the best platform to let you grow your customer base without a dedicated marketing team or a big budget

We’ve put together 6 of the best marketing tactics for marketing your business on Instagram and making it a key part of your business growth.

Optimize Your Instagram Profile for Instagram Search: 

Take advantage of the more robust Instagram Search or Instagram SEO (search engine optimization) by adding keywords to your Instagram profile. 

The name and username sections in your Instagram bio are searchable, which means if you add your brand name and also include what you actually do it becomes easier for people looking for your product or service to find your Instagram account.

Now, let’s say you have a financial consulting business for startups. If someone searches “handmade jewelry,” your account will show up in the results as your Instagram account name is searchable! 

Bonus: Make sure you add a Call to Action (CTA) so that people visiting your profile know what the next step is to learn more about your business. 

Focus on Reels and Videos:

Content on Instagram Reels gets 22% more engagement compared to regular videos on Instagram.

Wondering why people are dancing to more trends now? Because with Reels, people are able to consume content that entertains them and also adds value in less time. 

Instagram is pushing video content more and more, which means incorporating  Reels into your content strategy will help you grow your account faster.

And in addition to Reels, consider adding long-form videos to your Instagram strategy. Explain what your business or brand is about. Create personal connections with them. Try scheduling some time to go live and talk to your audience. Save the live video and upload it as a video on your profile. 

Collab with Other Influential Accounts:

Stop spending time comparing your business to other businesses and their content.  Instead, invest that time and effort to research and connect with other businesses that already speak to your target market and potentially collaborate to gain more reach and visibility for you both?

Start having conversations with people whose pages have your ideal audience or clients. Approach them genuinely and, when the time is right, propose a collaboration between your brands.

You could collaborate on Reels or posts with them or go Live with them. 

Be Consistent:

Do you know that the Instagram algorithm favors those pages that are consistent? 

Being consistent sends a signal to the algorithm and, more importantly, to your audience that you make your marketing and your followers a top priority. 

With consistency comes clarity. Remember to be clear about what your business is, who it’s for, and what benefits your customers/clients receive. 

Use Relevant Keywords and Hashtags:

As Adam Mosseri said – “hashtags don’t matter that much, but they still help us to know what the content is, thus getting you the right audience to see your content.”

The takeaway, you can no longer rely on hashtags to do the heavy lifting when it comes to Instagram Searches. Your keywords in your captions and profile matter more than ever, but hashtags are not dead! Between 15-20 hashtags per post won’t hurt. Remember, as always, don’t use irrelevant hashtags that have no connection with the content you’re providing.

Focus on Building a Loyal Community:

You’ve heard it before and you’ll hear it again: People buy from people. That’s why building a brand that is consistent and reliable is important, but also consider showing the real person/people behind that brand to create genuine connections with your audience.

Showing people your journey, your small & big moments or even your everyday life as a business owner via photos, videos, or Instagram stories helps you create that trust with your audience. For example, if you’re someone who loves yoga and meditation, post some pictures of yourself doing those things! If you’re someone who loves food and cooking, post some pictures of yourself eating delicious meals! You get the idea! Your audience wants to see something authentic about who you are as a person—not just what’s on paper (or screen).

I hope these tips helped you get clear on what you should actually focus on to grow your small business on Instagram; also, remember to apply these tips consistently without doubting yourself or your business, and see your business grow quickly & effectively in 2022!